Fitting aftermarket pedal pads

[DanPaul7]

Okay so I will be fitting some Sparco Reflex pedals soon but i'm not sure how to go about it. They need bolting in but it looks as though it will be difficult to bolt through the old accelerator pedal... is there any way to take the old pad off so I can drill straight through the pedal arm and bolt directly to that?

 

[singlespeed]

the original peddle covers are just stuck on and should peel off. Mind your fingers as the back edges may be sharp

 

[DanPaul7]

Thanks I will have a go of that once the pads get here. Is there any reason to not drill straight through the pedal arm? I have heard that you should not but I can really think of no reason why.
Also as far as getting the MOT done on the car in a few years, will having pedals bolted on fail it?

 

[JE_GT]

Bolting pedals on shouldn't be an MOT fail... my old Pug had bolt on pedals as standard

 

[singlespeed]

If the peddle pads aren't secured to the testers satisfaction, they will fail (well, at least the brake one will)
https://www.motinfo.gov.uk/htdocs/m4s03000301.htm
The original pad covers wrap over the pad without any significant overhang. Hence sticky pad type tape is sufficient to stop them falling off as theres no chance of pressing on an edge and levering them off . With a larger replacement, you could press on an edge and twist it off unless it was secured properly

Theres also the mention of

5. Inappropriate Repair or Modification Repairs and modifications to vehicles must be assessed on their merits, taking account of the nature and function of the component. The main criterion to be used when assessing repairs is whether the repair is obviously likely to adversely affect the roadworthiness of the vehicle. In respect of modifications, the main criterion should be whether the modification has seriously weakened the component

So drilling big holes through the center of the pad, next to where the peddle arm connects would likely fail if the tester didn't think they were still safe.

 

[DanPaul7]

Ah well I guess I will go for it... Could always unbolt them and stick the old ones back on for an MOT I guess.

 

[LCplParks]

that said the pad fell off the clutch pedal on my old car I stuck it back on several times before just chinning it off in the end and I never had any issues with MOTs

 

[singlespeed]

that said the pad fell off the clutch pedal on my old car I stuck it back on several times before just chinning it off in the end and I never had any issues with MOTs

So long as the clutch peddle itself was still safe, thats ok. Its the brake which should have a rubber cover or some tread

 

[LCplParks]

Oh right yeah that was fine

 

[DanPaul7]

Well I fitted the Sparco pedals which I find much more comfy for my large feet, can also heel-toe much easier which is nice. The accelerator pedal was a bit of a fiddle, couldn't get long bolts and go straight through the whole thing since the bolts would limit the pedal travel. In the end I used a small rotary tool to cut some of the middle pedal supports so I could put the nut right in the middle of the pedal, which was risky since I wasn't sure if it would be strong enough, but it seems exactly the same in strength really and the pad holds perfect.
Picture of how I bolted the accelerator:

Still very dusty since I didn't have time to clean before picture because phone was dying... looks lots better now thankfully.

 

[singlespeed]

^^ that looks like a good solution, the small reduction in strength of the peddle will probably be compensated for by the load being spread by the cover. Not that you need the same strength in the accelerator as you do with the brake, hence it being plactic instead of metal

 

[DanPaul7]

Yeah I gave it some checks before fitting the pedal to make sure it's not weak. I squeezed together the pedal top and bottom where its cut out to make sure it didn't collapse or something stupid, seems the same in strength really as the cut parts are actually plenty smaller than they look on the picture, they are only about 1-2 cm.
Wonder if it will pass an MOT like that when the time comes...

 

[singlespeed]

Wonder if it will pass an MOT like that when the time comes...

The Nyloc nuts will keep it/them inplace without coming loose. By the looks of that, theres no reason why it wouldn't pass if the others are similarly bolted